


The Secrets of Neverland

by profoundlyfadedprincess



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M, Inspired by Star Trek and Firefly, Space AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-19
Updated: 2016-08-29
Packaged: 2018-08-09 20:25:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,513
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7815877
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/profoundlyfadedprincess/pseuds/profoundlyfadedprincess
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Captain Emma Swan of the Starship Storybrooke is two years into a five-year mission to explore space. Over the last two years, she has crossed paths with her former rival at the academy turned pirate Killian Jones, Captain of the Jolly Roger. However, her most recent pursuit of him finds her following him into dangerous territory and a rescue mission that uncovers a terrible secret on an abandoned planet on the edge of space.</p><p>
  <i>"His hand touched her shoulder. A tentative trace of his fingertips. ‘You have no idea how many times I wanted to come back for you,’ he said softly. She looked over her shoulder, eyes narrowed despite the gloom. ‘But I knew how important Star Fleet was for you.’</i>
</p><p>
  <i>She turned back so her eyes were on the wall opposite, shrugging her shoulder out of his touch.</i>
</p><p>
  <i>‘You did good, Swan.’</i>
</p><p>
  <i>‘I don’t need your praise,’ she said."</i>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Part One - Pursuit Through the Hostile Zone

‘Much as I enjoy our little encounters, Swan,’ Killian Jones said over drinks at a bar on the SS Auras. ‘I really do need you off my back.’

Fourteen hours later Captain Emma Swan woke up fully clothed but handcuffed to a bed with a communicator to the Storybrooke just in reach. She cursed to herself as she explained to the Head Engineer, Leroy, of her predicament. The usually grumpy man had laughed, painfully pointing out her weakness when it came to the roguish Captain before teleporting her, sans bed and cuffs, aboard her starship.

‘Not a word of this,’ she ordered before making her way to the bridge.

She marched through the corridors. The ship had over twenty miles of corridors but it was a blissfully short walk from the engineering department and bridge. At the elevator, she pushed her finger to the ID panel that provided the trip to the bridge. As she stepped in the automated voice of the ship’s AI greeted her in its cool voice.

‘Computer, order a report on the whereabouts of the Jolly Roger,’ she said as the lift began to move.

‘Yes Captain,’ responded the Computer. ‘We also picked up a transmission encoded so it could only be unlocked by you.’

‘Play.’

Killian Jones’ handsome, if smug, face filled the screen before her. ‘Hope there are no hard feelings over last night, love, but you really should have just walked away when I gave you the chance. Until next time.’

He smiled as he gave her a mock salute before the screen went black. She ground her teeth. Jones was the most infuriating person she had the misfortune to cross paths with. The worse thing was it kept happening. The first time had been a minor infraction on a lesser planet in the Aurilla Belt a mere two months into her mission but this was now the fourth time. The charges against him were much more serious now.

‘Computer, send me the coordinates the message was sent from,’ she requested as the doors opened.

‘Captain on the Bridge,’ called Ensign Henry Mills from his seat at the navigation screen prompting First Officer Elsa Snowbourne to rise from the Con.

‘Captain,’ she said, standing up and bowing her head. ‘I trust your evening was fruitful.’

The smirk on face suggested some previous knowledge of the position Emma had found herself in. Emma took her seat, sliding into the leather chair and crossing her ankles.

‘I was able to distract Jones for a short while, but he still has something of a head start over us,’ said Emma. ‘Where team two able to fully identify his cargo?’

‘We were able to identify several Class Four Warp Drives and some embargoed Class Seven Plasma Guns from Oebos,’ Elsa told her.

Emma looked up to see her First Officer in a stiff position, shoulders tense and hands behind her back. ‘What is he doing, Elsa?’

‘I wish I knew,’ she replied. ‘This doesn’t seem to be a black market run. While the Class Fours would sell in the right place, there is nowhere to sell the Class Seven’s. I’m at a loss as to where he actually found them.’

Emma nodded. ‘Thank you, Elsa.’

She glanced down at the screen embedded into the arm of her chair. It was full of the information collected on the location of the Jolly Roger. Emma drummed her fingers against the arm and sighed. ‘Mr. Loxley, I’m sending the last known coordinates and projected path of Jones. Set a course to follow.’

Robin Loxley looked at the information Emma had just sent him. ‘With all due respect, Ma’am, that is uncharted space.’

Beside him, Ensign Mills shook his head. ‘Ma’am,’ he piped up, ‘it isn’t just uncharted space.’ The young man got to his feet and walked to the large screen. ‘Auras is our most heavily guarded outposts,’ he explained, ‘because of this belt here.’ He pointed to an area blacked out on the map. ‘It’s Ji territory.’

Emma blinked, her fingers curling over the edges of her chair. ‘Can we punch through at warp?’

Captain Emma Swan didn’t like putting her crew in jeopardy, but the report on Jones’ cargo was enough to follow him through. The Ji weren’t capable of warp speeds hence Emma was pretty certain she could outrun them. Still, it made her blood run cold. She paced her study with her hands behind her back pondering what Jones was up to. More than once she spoke aloud to the ceiling in a desperate bid for answers. Jones might infuriate her but when she sat down with the evidence of his crimes she couldn’t make head nor tail of it.

A beep on her desk alerted her to a visitor. Emma looked up, pushing her bangs from her face. ‘Come,’ she yelled.

Elsa walked across the threshold. ‘We’re coming up on Jones,’ she said. ‘Appears he has retrofitted his ship with new warp drive.’

Emma nodded. ‘He always had a talent for mechanics and engineering,’ she said softly, leaning back on her desk.

Elsa nodded, her white hair bobbing as she walked further into the room, dropping the mask of First Officer. ‘He made his choice a long time ago, Emma,’ she said.

‘But why?’ Emma replied. ‘I can’t help but think…’ she trailed off. ‘What is he doing?’

‘I wish I knew.’

Before Emma could continue another notification rang on her console. ‘Swan,’ she called after pressing the accepted button.

‘We’re coming up on the Jolly,’ said Mr. Loxley.

‘Thank you,’ she said then looked at Elsa. ‘Shall we, Ms. Snowbourne?’

Elsa stepped back. ‘After you, Ma’am.’

Emma strode back onto the bridge adjusting her uniform as Elsa took her place at her station. ‘Hail Jones on all channels,’ she announced as she slipped back into her chair. ‘And lock on. If he doesn’t answer, we’ll blow him out the sky.’

The screen filled with his charming face, an infectious smile on his lips. ‘Captain,’ Killian said, ‘a joy to see you as always. A little sooner than I expected.’

‘This is a Class Eight Warp Ship, Jones,’ retorted Emma. ‘Even with your little stunt you could hardly outrun us.’

‘I would have despaired had we had the ability, Swan,’ he retorted. ‘Now kindly disengage love, you’re making my First Mate nervous.’

Emma nodded and with a hand signal the weapons system offlined. She looked at the man on the screen before her. If she looked out the window of the bridge she would see his small ship glinting in the distance. If they were alone, she would ask him why they were on the edge of space.

‘You need to surrender your ship, Jones,’ she said instead. ‘You are in violation of six Space Corps Directives as well as charges of piracy and smuggling lodged against you. I am authorised if you do not stand down to use force to bring you in.’

Killian gave her a sympathetic look. ‘Oh Swan, I love it when you threaten me. But aren’t you more interested in why I’ve brought you here?’

Emma blinked in a bid to keep her composure. ‘Okay, Jones,’ she says, with a quick flick of her eyes to Elsa. ‘I’ll bite.’

‘Take a look at your charts,’ he replies. ‘To your port side, you should see a ‘dead planet’, Neverland.’

Mills inputted a couple of commands into his console, reducing the window with Jones’s face so the screen before her is dominated with a map. Ji territory now sits behind her. Truth be told, there is a planet with dead status. Emma gets to her feet and walks towards the screen. Elsa is also on her feet, but her icy eyes remain on Killian.

‘Computer,’ Emma says quietly, ‘full status report on Neverland. Location binary; forty-five point nine, fifty, ten point eight.’ 

‘Neverland; forty-five point nine, fifty, ten point eight. Status: classified.’

Emma frowned as Killian’s smile grew wider.

‘Override; beta, sigma, eight, three, twenty,’ she said. ‘Report.’

‘Override confirmed,’ said the AI. ‘Neverland; forty-five point nine, fifty, ten point eight. Status classified.’

Emma growled in frustration.

‘I wouldn’t bother, love,’ said Jones, as if he pre-empted her next move. ‘Classification goes beyond the Federation. Beyond your father, even.’

Emma started at the reference to her family. She looked at Jones, his expression back to one of sympathy. Once again she wishes she were not on a bridge full of people as she speaks to this man. But before she is able to say anything more, the wail of a siren broke every thought process.

‘Ms. Snowbourne, report,’ she yells as she settles back into her seat.

‘Captain, we have incoming from a Ji Cruiser,’ yelled back her first officer. ‘Must have broken off from the group. I’m seeing three locked on Type Forty Missiles.’

‘Engage full shields,’ replied Emma. ‘Mr. Loxley, basic evasive manoeuvres. Ensign Mills, plot a course outside of their range but close enough to Neverland to survey it.’ She looked up at her screen to where Killian remained in the corner. He smiled in a rather self-indulgent manner suggesting what he saw pleased him. However, just above his head, a missile rocketed past the Storybrooke.

‘Killian,’ she said, looking at his screen. ‘You have incoming.’

Her words were too late as the screen burst into flame. In the distance, a supernova lit up, covering a small portion of the bridge window. Emma flew to her feet as the flames died. The Jolly Roger lost its stabilisation as it somersaulted towards Neverland. Emma grabbed her personal communicator at the sight of the ship glinting against the light of a G-type main sequence star situated two hundred thousand million kilometres to their starboard position.

‘Killian,’ she yelled as she fell back into her seat as she watched the Jolly Roger get dragged into the orbit of Neverland.

‘Detected emergency shuttle deployment,’ called Ms Lucas from her radar station. ‘Captain’s beacon identified.’

Emma spun to look at her third officer. ‘Are you certain?’

‘Yes, Ma’am,’ replied Ms Lucas.

Emma nodded. ‘Ms Snowbourne, you have the Con.’

Emma surged to her feet and headed to the elevator. Instead of going to the Captain’s chair, Elsa followed Emma, grabbing her arm at the elevator.

‘It’s a dead planet,’ whispered Elsa as Emma wheeled around.

Emma looked to the ceiling. ‘Computer, real time analysis of Neverland. Location binary; forty-five point nine, fifty, ten point eight.’

The Captain’s wrist strap bleeped as the information was transmitted there. She looked at Elsa. ‘What type of dead planet has a full ecosystem with an atmosphere for human survival?’

Elsa frowned. ‘Nothing this far from Osiris is terraformed. Emma, I know you still care for him, but this is suicide.’

‘Ms Snowbourne, we have a duty to bring the crew of the Jolly in alive,’ she said. ‘If I am not successful, you are required to report back to High Command and my parents before continuing our mission.’

Emma stepped into the elevator.

‘He wouldn’t do this for you.’

Emma looked up. ‘He would.’


	2. Part Two - Finding Neverland

Emma materialised in a hot forest with the power of two suns beating down on her. According to the reports, Neverland only experienced five hours of darkness. In the proximity of two Type-G stars, she didn’t understand why anyone had attempted to terraform here. The water percentage was well below the accepted average required for human survival. She could easily accept that as the reason it was a dead planet were it not for the classified status Jones claimed not even her father could override.

She looked around the terrain. The thick, dense forest sprawled across her vision with little sign of where the emergency shuttle may have landed. Emma pulled her PDA from the utility belt she had strapped to her waist before leaving the Storybrooke. The machine booted up and started scanning for the beacon. Leroy claimed he would be putting her down less than a mile away, unwilling to further endanger her by putting her down directly on the site.

‘Captain to Bridge,’ she called, head bent towards the communicator on her chest.

‘Go ahead, Captain,’ Elsa’s voice was obscured with static.

‘Can you look into improving the signal?’ she asked her First Officer. ‘Can you confirm my location in relation to the emergency beacon?’

‘It should be two clicks to the north,’ replied Elsa. ‘According to the data, when facing north, both suns should be on your left.’

Emma sighed as the PDA finally picked up the beacon. ‘Easier said than done, Snowbourne,’ said Emma. ‘The canopy of the forest is so thick there is barely any light down here. Will you continue trying to obtain as much data on this planet as we can?’

‘Ma’am,’ said Elsa, her voice hesitant, ‘shall I contact your father?’

‘Absolutely not,’ she said, ‘besides if Jones is to be believed then it will do us no good. Swan out.’

Emma switched off the communicator and began walking in the direction her PDA indicated. The trek was not easy, climbing over fallen trunks and vine undergrowth. It took ten minutes before the wretched smell of plasma fuel filled Emma’s nose. She winced at the assault on her nose as she pushed into the clearing created by the crash landing. Emma blinked at the brightness caused by the two suns beating down on the space. True to Snowbourne’s remarks, the two suns were indeed on her left. Planets with two suns so close were a rarity as they couldn’t produce the right conditions for human life. The lush growth of this forest was unprecedented according to the education she had received both as a child then as she progressed through the Academy.

She stepped into the crater produced by the impact. The undergrowth had been ripped away making it easy to step out to the escape pod. It was small, battered by both the impact with the atmosphere of the planet and landing. The observation window was cracked. Emma frowned. If it happened on entry, then it was likely Jones hadn’t survived to the ground. She tried to ignore her racing heart as she ran over.

Behind the shattered visor was the bloodied face of Killian Jones. Emma’s heart jumped in her chest. It was with shaky hands she fumbled with the release mechanism. It hissed as the compressed air of the compartment escape with the breaking of the seal. That was a good sign the pod hadn’t been compromised on entry. A little bit of relief settled as it opened to reveal her quarry with two Class Seven Plasma Guns at his feet.

From the belt at her waist, she pulled out another handheld device. The medical scanner blipped to life as she held it over Killian’s prone body. She could see he was breathing but they were shallow. From another pocket, she produced a shot adrenaline. While she wasn’t a doctor, she had basic medical training as part of the requirements to become a Starfleet captain. She pressed the blunt tip over his jugular when his heartbeat pulsed just under his skin.

‘Come on, Jones,’ she whispered as the canister decompressed and the drug was sent racing to his heart. The moment it took dragged on. ‘Don’t you dare leave me, Killian.’

Then his eyes flew opened and he gasped. Emma let go of the breath she had been holding but didn’t manage to school her expression before Killian looked at her. ‘Hello, love,’ he said in a dazed tone. ‘It isn’t every day a beautiful princess comes to the rescue of a devilishly handsome rogue.’

Emma scoffed as Killian sat up, groaning at the pain he was in. Her med scanner showed as well as the gash on his forehead he had two broken ribs and bruising to his hip and pelvic region.

‘I’m only here to arrest you, Jones,’ she replied. ‘Care to explain the Class Sevens at your feet. They are embargoed under the Ezediah Treaty of Twenty-Two Eighty.’

‘That they are,’ he replied, pushing his thick black hair out the way of his eyes, wincing when his fingers glossed over the gash in his forehead.

Emma stepped back as Jones got to his feet. She pressed her communicator. ‘Captain to Bridge.’

She was greeted with cold static. Killian raised his eyebrows then bent over to pick up the two guns. ‘There is a force field through the atmosphere,’ he said, handing a gun to her. ‘It disrupts communication and teleportation.’ She blinked at the gun, recoiling from the powerful weapon. ‘Love, your phaser won’t do you any good here.’

‘And where is here, anyway?’

‘Told you; Neverland. A supposedly dead planet,’ he explained as he swung his plasma gun over his shoulder, ‘and the reason I was thrown out the Academy. Now take the bloody gun, Swan.’

He pushed it to her chest, leaving her no choice but to take the gun. She blinked at his words as he began to walk out the crater.

‘You weren’t thrown out,’ she called after him, mimicking his earlier movement of swinging the gun onto her shoulder. ‘You left. That is what you said to me when you were six planets away.’

He turned to face her. ‘You really think I would just up and leave?’ he asked her, his blue eyes boring into hers. He looked away. ‘Look, I found this place in the databanks. When I queried it, I was court-martialled. It was hushed up. Had I told you the truth then you would have been court-martialled as well.’

Killian began walking again, clutching his chest where his ribs were broken. Emma frowned as Killian climbed over the lip of the crater. She scrambled after him, using her hands for extra leverage as she climbed after him.

‘Why would the Federation cover this up?’ she asked once she was at his side again, wiping the beads of sweat forming on her brow.

‘They didn’t, per say,’ replied Killian. ‘This place, and whatever happened here. predate the Federation by a few hundred years. What happened here was done by the Alliance.’ He looked at her, his eyes going to her utility belt. ‘Tell me you have painkillers, Swan.’

Emma looked down then produced a tube, pressed it to his neck and let the solution infuse into his body with a hiss. He sighed in relief, cracking his neck. As he did so, a streak in the sky caught Emma’s eye. She didn’t need to be told it was the Jolly Roger. Killian seemed to sense it as well. He turned just as a Warp Drive exploded. Emma shielded her eyes as a second explosion rocked them.

‘So much for a quiet entrance,’ he muttered.

Emma turned to him with a glower. ‘What about your crew?’

‘You think I brought them out here, love?’ he asked. ‘Not a chance. Left them on the Auras.’

‘But you said –’

‘– what I needed to so you’d disengage your weapons, Swan,’ he cut in. ‘Now are you coming? We might as well find out why I was thrown out the academy while the mighty Starship Storybrooke figures out a way to reach her Captain.’ 

The trek through the forest was largely carried out in silence. As they walked Emma repeatedly tried to contact the Storybrooke only to be met with static. On one or two occasions, she was certain she heard Elsa cool voice trying to reach out but it was fleeting. Ahead of her Killian lead the way with a map on his PDA. It was evident he had come prepared and been planning this for a long time. It struck he had been planning this from the moment he was ordered off Osiris. He was slowing up, hobbling more as his pain relief wore off. She considered giving him more but also knew it was unethical without knowledge of how his injuries had developed over the past two hours.

Eventually, he stopped.

‘There we are Swan.’ Killian nodded his head ahead of him to a what looked like a tower reclaimed by nature. ‘The first sun will be down within the hour. We’ll need shelter anyway.’

‘What is this place?’ she asked as she took point, pulling out her phaser.

‘Outpost of some sort, or control tower,’ he said. ‘I don’t know. I was able to gain access to schematics of this place before the court martial but they aren’t particularly detailed. They do show a city another few hours trek away but we won’t make it before nightfall.’

‘You won’t make it much further tonight,’ she pointed out. ‘You’re injuries might be worse.’

‘Aye,’ agreed Killian. ‘That is a fair assumption to make.’

Emma frowned at him. ‘Why didn’t you tell me?’

‘I’m telling you now,’ he said. ‘We needed to some sort of shelter before the first sun went down. It’s anyone’s guess what is out there.’ She looked out into the forest. It had been quiet through their trek, but it was likely that Killian’s crash had scared off the surrounding wildlife. ‘Look, to make it up to you love, I’ll lie back and let you do whatever checks you think necessary.’

Emma looked back at him. ‘It’s for your own good.’

‘Of course,’ he said. ‘How else will you bring me to justice if I die here.’

She shook her head, unwilling to get into that discussion. Emma stalked up to the outpost, noting the crumbling walls were covered in vines. She walked around the perimeter of the building looking for the door and finding it buried behind the crawling plants that had reclaimed the building. It was so thoroughly covered that Emma predicted it had left for over three hundred years. There was no way to access the door. In the dying light, Emma pulled out a torch and shone it up to examine the upper levels. Killian stood beside her, gazing upward with a grimace on his face.

‘We’re going to have to climb,’ she said. ‘Think you can manage it?’

‘Shoot me up with some more of that Oxycodone and it won’t matter,’ he said.

Emma frowned. ‘You could puncture your lung.’

‘And I’m not bloody well staying out here,’ he tilted his head to expose his neck. ‘Come on, Swan. Don’t leave a man hanging.’

She ground her teeth as she pulled the pain relief infuser from her belt and jabbed it into his neck. He sighed as the pain was relieved, then stood aside.

‘Ladies first,’ he toned with a bow.

Emma threw him a scathing look as she secured the gun he had given her over her back, curled her hand into the vine and began to climb.

The climb to the top was slow with her injured companion. On more than one occasion she found herself looking down to check on him as the forest around them filled with strange noises. Finding purchase in the climb on got harder as they reached the top. But she found a broken, exposed window that they would both be able to get through. Emma deployed all her skills to swing through it. After landing on the floor she pulled off her tunic and lay it over the opening in case there was any stray glass left in the fitting. She reached out to grab Killian, catching him below the elbow as she hauled him up.

‘Come on,’ she said as she wrapped her arms under his shoulders to pull him through.

She hauled him with both her arms around him. He pushed with his knees, propelling them over, Emma landing with an ‘offff’ as she broke his fall. Killian groaned in pain as he tries to capture his breath.

‘You okay Swan?’

‘Never better, Jones,’ she replied. ‘Mind getting off me. Forgotten how heavy you are.’

He pushed himself up, his blue eyes flickered over her face, his gaze intense. Emma’s breath caught as their eyes met. The tension that always lingered between them was suffocating in the mere centimetres of space between their faces. They had never managed to get this close to each other in the two years they had been crossing paths in the cat and mouse game that led here.

‘Killian,’ she said softly. ‘I need to check you over.’

He nodded, rolling off her and landed with a thump beside her. She looked over to see him clenching his face as he breathed, his hand cradling his injured side. Emma pushed herself up and pulled out her medical scanner to examine him for the second time. She frowned at the results.

‘We need to sit you up,’ she declared, offering her hand to him. ‘Lean against the wall.’

‘What is it?’

‘Punctured lung,’ she said. ‘I’ll need to figure out a way to make a chest drain.’

He scooted back to the wall with some difficult as Emma retrieved her tunic, shaking it out before she pulled it on again to cover her vest. She didn’t button it back on but pressed the communicator on her chest.

‘Captain to Bridge,’ she said but was only greeted by static.

‘Told you, Swan, there is an electromagnet disruption field around the whole planet,’ he said. ‘We’ll need to switch it off, or the Storybrooke will need to blow it up from her position above us.’

Emma scowled at him. ‘There is no harm in trying. You need the med bay more than a makeshift lung drain.’

‘Aye,’ he said, waving his hand. ‘All for my own good.’

She pulled her utility belt back on and got out the torch. ‘Something like that,’ she muttered.

The thin beam of light traced the brick walls. There were some vines, but there were also posters and what appeared to be newspaper cuttings adorning the walls. Emma looked at them, but the writing was faded beyond readable. This room looked to be a living space with a collapsed sofa and bed against either wall covered in moth-eaten fabric. There was also a table with a bowl and plates stacked on it. Whoever had been here must have left in some sort of hurry as there was evidence of other personal processions left.

‘I’m going to check downstairs,’ she informed her injured companion. ‘Just stay there.’

Without waiting for an answer she shone the torch down the stairs. With infinite care, she proceeded to navigate the stairs noting the were made with metal rather than wood. Still, she tested each step before putting her full weight on it. Falling through would be catastrophic. They would both die here together if she got badly hurt. Emma reached down to the next floor.

This room looked like a dorm. In the gloomy light, she could make out four bunks and a table. She shone her torch, checking the room. The thin beam of light landed on a skull. She screamed.

‘What is it, Swan?’ Killian’s voice echoed down from above.

‘There are human remains down here,’ she called back, pulling out her med scanner. She set it to analyse bone structure. ‘Didn’t expect it, is all,’ she continued as she held up the scanner.

Male. Late twenties to early thirties. Some vitamins deficient. Not enough to kill him.

The bones looked dried out, but she could see some evidence of the flesh having been eaten away which wasn’t unusual.

‘Check of a journal, or writing of some sort,’ yelled Killian. ‘He might have penned a letter in the hope someone found the poor sod.’

‘I’m more interested in a first aid kit,’ she called back. ‘I can have a better look tomorrow with some proper light.’

‘Check the kitchen area,’ he said.

She nodded, heading over to the next set of stairs. Emma had to ignore the urge to pull out her Phaser as a cold sweat formed at the base of her skull. She found the mess and common room on the next level. There was more evidence of human remains. Emma couldn’t help there was something amiss. She glanced back at the stairs pondering Killian’s earlier words that he had been court martialled for finding this place.

Why?

Emma searched the mess with her torch before going in and opening the cupboards. She came across cans, and bottles, picking up one with a faint label that declared the contents as being rum. The seal hadn’t been broken so there was, surprisingly, every chance it was preserved. Under the sink, she found what she was looking for. The kit was basic but had everything she needed to patch up Killian.

He was resting with his eyes closed when she returned, but he looked worse for wear. His skin was pale and bags under his eyes were pronounced. She’d never seen him like this. She knelt beside him, placed the medi-kit and rum by his hip before placing a hand on his forehead to test his temperature. He was clammy to touch.

‘Have I ever told you how much I missed you?’

Delirious too.

‘I’m sure if that were wholly true you wouldn’t have drugged me then cuffed me to a bed last night,’ she replied before putting the torch in her mouth to open the kit and bottle of rum.

‘Wasn’t just any bed, Swan,’ he said. ‘It was mine.’

She blinked as she brought the rum up to her nose. She wrinkled it at the harsh smell. Killian pulled it from her hands and put it to his lips.

‘Not bad,’ he declared after taking a swig.

‘Yeah, but it doesn’t mix well with Oxycodone,’ she said, snatching the bottle back. ‘Undo your shirt.’

She picked up the scalpel and opened its wrapping, then poured the rum over it while ignoring the expression on his face as he undid the buttons. It was the closest she’d get it to sterile. She looked over his exposed torso for a moment, then pulled out her med scanner again to help her decide where the put the drain.

‘Have you ever done this outside of a training room?’ he asked as the scan bleeped.

‘It’s going to hurt,’ she said, deflecting him.

In response, Killian grabbed the ancient rum and took another swig. ‘Don’t worry love, I’ve had far worse, just make it quick.’

She nodded, opening the pack with the kit with the drain. As she had done with the scalpel she doused it with rum.

‘Okay. Think happy thoughts,’ she said as she dug the blade in.

Killian yelled in pain, his deep voice reverberating about the small room. She tried to block it out as she put in the drain. Blood stained his dark shirt, but clear fluid escaped through the tube. Emma sighed, sitting back with a smile.

‘You okay?’ she asked, trying to keep the shake from her voice.

‘Better than you, Swan,’ he replied, holding out the bottle of rum. ‘You should take a sip of that.’

‘And you should rest.’


	3. Part Three - Tink

It didn’t take long for Killian’s shallow breathing to fill the darkened room. The medi scanner showed an improvement in his vitals but moving him in the morning would only cause a decline in his health. She sighed as she got to her feet after the second sun set. Out of habit, she pressed her communicator but is only met the familiar static that had filled the air since the only call after materialisation. Her appearance must have disrupted the field around the planet allowing their first communication before being blocked again. She should rest as well but she’s agitated. There is something very wrong about the human remains she has found. Not to mention the curiosity of what about this planet prompted High Command to court martial him.

Emma retrieved the torch from her pocket and set it to the lowest level. She shone it around, walking over to the armoire beside the broken bed. It was dust ridden. Untouched for hundreds of years. Pulling out the drawers would likely disturb Killian.

She turned and began to descend the stairs to the dorm below. Killian was right. She needed to find some sort of journal or letter that might indicate what happened before his demise. She was drawn back to the skeleton in the bed using her med scanner to perform an in-depth diagnostic of the body. However, there was no more information to garner from him.

Emma considered going back down to the mess to check out the other remains she had found on the sofa. However, she suspected they would give her similar information. Instead, she headed back up the stairs to check on her patient. As she looked at him, she considered the little information he had given her about this place. She switched off her torch as she tiptoed across the floor so she could extract his PDA from the inside pocket of the battered leather jacket he wore. He seemed to be out cold thanks to the combination of pain killers and rum. She extracted the handheld device slowly pausing when he exhaled then slipped it out. It wasn’t as advanced at her own kit but it had been retrofitted.

It was also password protected.

She sat down beside him and looked at the password command. Several years ago she might have been able to guess it. Five years of piracy suggested a darker man with secrets. A man who was willing to drug her to keep her off his back.

The password command blipped at her. She glanced at his peaceful face again, the colour returning to the apples of his cheeks. He looked no different to the young, open Star Fleet cadet she had once known. The numbers just came to her as she watched his lashes flutter against his cheeks. It worked. The screen blazed to life. The background picture caught her breathe. Emma blinked before pushing the implication aside as she accessed the file system.

Five years of research cumulated in very little. A few maps with supporting documents. He had piloted the Jolly Roger out to the edge of the atmosphere to survey what he could on a couple of occasions. According to the map, they were on edge on the largest city he had found. There was also a faint beacon signal he had picked up. The range broadcast on both old digital and even older analogue systems. Emma looked up at the ceiling, imagining she could see the stars pondering if Elsa had picked the same beacon on the bridge of the Storybrooke.

‘What are you doing Swan?’

Killian faint, but deep voice, cut through the silence.

‘Reading your files on this place,’ she replied. She tilted her head to the side to look at him. ‘Did you hack every core computer you came across for this?’

‘Yes, not with much to show for it though.’ he replied his tone suggesting that should be obvious. ‘I got chucked out the academy for finding this place. I wanted to know why. Ask yourself why a Star Fleet Cadet with a clean record –’ Emma snorted ‘– was court-martialled and dismissed for asking why several million was quietly being diverted here when it was classified as dead.’ He took the PDA from her and flicked to another document. ‘See?’ She took the PDA back and read the document. It was mere months old. ‘Now aren’t you just a little bit interested?’

‘I was interested when I saw the skeleton downstairs,’ she said. ‘It’s not natural.’

He nodded, understanding the look that formed in her eyes as she looked at the at the stairwell. ‘You need to rest, as well Swan,’ he said. ‘It might be some time before the Storybrooke is able to locate you.’

She woke to an empty room, wrapped in a battered leather jacket that smelled of spicy rum and a cologne Killian hadn’t changed in eight years. She resisted the urge to breathe in from the material as she gathered it into her arms. Outside the second sun was rising, the sky turning an odd orange-purple hue on the horizon as the forest quietened down around the tower. The bottle of rum was empty. Emma frowned in frustration as she got to her feet. She checked the window, walking over and peering down the five stories they had climbed when the sun set.

‘Think I’d escape?’ he asked, holding some dilapidated pieces of paper.

He still looked pale, sweat beading on his brow which he wiped away with the back of his hand. He’d done his shirt and vest up after leaving it open for the night which was a small mercy.

‘No,’ she said, holding his jacket out. ‘Looking to see how far up we are or if anything was interested in our presence. What have you got there?’

‘Radio transmission notes,’ he said, strutting into the room but still cradling his side. ‘Seems they were observing the local wildlife.’

He handed her the notes, exchanging them for his jacket which he threw over the armoire. Emma took them carefully looking at the notes.

‘Feral humans?’ she said looking at the observations about a pack of boys who had made the forest their home. ‘Hardly the way to talk about indigenous people.’

‘Read some more,’ he said, ‘that’s just the end of it.’

Emma frowned, flicking through the pages, leaning back against the wall. She blinked. ‘This was part of a secret facility.’

‘Which explains the obscure key on the map for this place,’ he said. ‘The humans mentioned seemed to have come from a nearby training facility.’ He pulled out his PDA. ‘There isn’t anything on the map beyond a smaller city further south.’

She shrugged. ‘Could be under the city, or concealed in a tower block.’

He conceded the point by cocking his eyebrow. ‘Then we get to the city. The emergency beacon might give us more information.’

‘In your state?’

He pulled a flask from his jean’s pocket. ‘S’fine, I topped it with rum so you can save on the Oxycodone,’ he said. ‘Might need it for an actual injury.’

The forest thinned to a long grassed field before the empty city. The city loomed in the distance. The map indicated they were ten clicks away from it and would have to travel under the beating dual suns to get there before the next sun down. Killian loped behind her, losing pace under his injuries and dragging back on the limited supply of rum to keep the pain at bay. She had tried to persuade him to stay in the tower while she ventured forth to the city.

The wild-eyed anger she had been faced with sent her recoiling back when he advanced on her telling her he would have the truth. She had only nodded her acquiesce in reply, looking away and only daring to glance up when she heard him grunt as he pulled his coat on. The first sun was laying low in the sky, one shadow lengthening as the planet seemed to come alive again. It was clear, now the fauna had recovered from the crash landing, that everything slunk away when both suns were up. She used her PDA to scan for signs of life, picking up signals coming from the direction she had come.

‘What do you know about the landscape of this place?’ she asked Killian as she paused to look in the direction they had come.

‘Dense forest or water for the most part,’ he grunted, his skin pale.

She pulled the medi scanner out again. ‘You need to rest.’

‘In the middle of a field?’ he said he asked her incredulously. ‘Let’s get to the city.’

He loped ahead. She stared helplessly after him not wanting to reignite his anger.

As they reached the edge of the city, Killian kicking through a wood panel and pushing into what was an overgrown garden. Before Emma pushed through, she looked back, shielding her eyes from the orange glow. Her eyes danced over the swaying grass but she was certain there was something more. Again, she drew out her PDA to scan the surrounding area.

‘Jones,’ she called through the hole, looking at the read-out. ‘Jones?’ She spun to look through the gap. ‘Killian,’ she yelled at his still form as he looked up at the house ahead of him.

‘Aye love?’

‘I’m getting human life signs,’ she said, looking back at her PDA. ‘Out there.’

He turned back and walked towards her with his own device out. ‘Mutated,’ he concluded from his own readouts. ‘From years of a small gene pool. We have no idea what sort of people they could be if they’ve abandoned the city for the forest.’

‘They could be the descendants of the people the tower was observing,’ she concluded.

Killian looked up. ‘Which would not be good if they still enjoy their cannibalistic tendencies,’ he replied. He grabbed her upper arm. ‘Come on,’ he said, ‘we need to find somewhere else to stay. This place isn’t going to be safe.’

The neighbourhood was designed in curving streets with large houses and big gardens. Emma looked around in awe. No such thing existed amongst the core planets. They were all sleek towers with bio-gardens. Her home didn’t have the charm of this place.

‘What do you think made our pursuers remain in the forest?’ she asked, rolling her shoulders against the gun strap digging into her shoulder.

‘If they’ve adapted to their surroundings, they may see no reason to leave,’ he replied, his eyes ranking over the home, mentally assessing them. ‘Food is likely to be abundant there for them when they aren’t eating their own.’

‘Did you have any idea they were –’

‘– cannibals?’ he finished. ‘I’m as surprised as you to find indigenous human life here at all.’

‘What were you expecting to find?’

‘Secret training base,’ he said. ‘Undercover project of some unimaginable horror that reveals the Federation to be as corrupt as the regimes of old.’

Emma turned on him. ‘I accept what Star Fleet has done to you is wrong, Killian, but it doesn’t mean there is some vast network of conspiracy out there.’

He sauntered back to her, stepping into her personal space. ‘So what is the Captain of the Starship Storybrooke going to do about it?’

‘Take everything we find to the highest authority. Higher than Admiral Gold.’

He considered what she was said then nodded. Such words from her were not an empty promise and Killian Jones knew it. Emma wasn’t in the habit of using her family ties to get her way. But for him, it appeared, she was willing to make an exception.

‘I do have to wonder what your father would make of this,’ he said as he winced.

Emma went to reach out for him when a clatter made them jump apart. She looked around in the direction he had come from, grabbing her pen torch to look between the two tall buildings they were beside.

‘Are you getting any readout?’

Killian’s PDA blipped. ‘Humanoid. Female. Similar make up to who followed us from the forest.’

Emma turned to look at him then started walking into the alleyway with her Phaser out. Behind her, there was a whine as Killian charged up his Plasma gun.

She turned to look over her shoulder. ‘Switch that thing off now,’ she said, her directive an order not a request. He gave her a rakish glance, his response clear – she was not his captain. Equally, as she had not arrested him, she couldn’t very well direct him as her prisoner. ‘You shoot and you will be in violation of the Prime Directive,’ she hissed.

‘I’ll risk it,’ he replied with a careless shrug. ‘I’m sure the Captain of the Storybrooke will not be so hung up on the Prime Directive if breaking it saves her life.’

‘Just stay close,’ she replied.

‘As you wish.’

She was tiny, so far as humanoids went, with a pixie like face peering at them with childlike curiosity. Hidden behind something that could have been metal bins, Emma coaxed her out with a gentle voice and promises not to bring her to any harm. She lay a reassuring hand on the arm of the child while Killian scanned her with the medi scanner he had slipped from Emma’s waist.

‘Friend?’

Her voice was harsh from little use. The delivery was far from what was considered normal on the core planets in the Misthaven Belt.

Emma nodded. ‘Friend,’ she repeated. ‘I’m Emma, this is Killian.’

She recoiled. ‘No kill.’

‘No, no,’ said Emma. ‘No kill. Why don’t you just call him Jones instead.’

‘Emma, Jones,’ she repeated. Behind Emma, Killian chuckled at the sound of their names combined in such a manner, but the girl wasn’t done. ‘Tink,’ she said. ‘Runaway.’

‘Okay Tink,’ Emma replied, getting back to her feet and looking at Killian. ‘What have we got?’

‘It’s fascinating. I’m no doctor, but the readouts suggest an interesting evolution pattern,’ he said, showing Emma the readouts. ‘She has bat-like wings. Her fingers and feet have developed to make it easier to climb.’

‘Any guess as to how old she is?’

‘None, her mineral composition isn’t registered in the Star Fleet’s data banks at all,’ he continued, now pulling out his own PDA to search through his files there. ‘What are you doing outside of the forest alone Tink?’

‘Kill small ones for food,’ she replied. Emma and Killian looked at her as she gestured towards herself. ‘Me small one. No good for others.’

‘Guess they haven’t outgrown their desire for flesh,’ Killian muttered grimly. ‘Is there anywhere safe? We think they followed us here?’

‘Down low,’ she said. ‘Lost boys are always high up.’

Tink’s strange grey eyes flickered to the rooftops, making their shadowed alleyway feel smaller than ever. Tink flickered away, her movements fluid and sinuous as she headed to what she called safe. Emma frowned after her then looked up at Killian was who watching her with curiosity until he felt Emma’s gaze on him.

‘I don’t like this,’ she said when his eyes meet hers.

‘Aye, love,’ he agreed. ‘She seems entirely too well fed to be ‘no good for others’. Bet this Plasma gun isn’t looking so contraband now, is it Swan?’

Emma looked at him, looking him over, out of the sun some of his colouring had returned to his face but he was sweating. She stepped in close, pushing herself up to her tip toes so her lips were close to his ears. ‘We give it ten minutes, then I want you to collapse in pain,’ she explained. ‘Stall her from taking us to where she wants to. I need to check your drain anyway.’

‘Why can’t you collapse into my arms?’

Emma glowered. ‘Because you have two broken ribs, a punctured lung and makeshift drain in situate,’ she ground out. Then smiled sweetly. ‘I could always remind you of how much it hurt.’

‘I’m well aware,’ he replied.

‘I realise it must be damaging to all that male libido to have me carry you around…’

‘Not at all,’ he cut in. ‘I was just hoping to carry you in my arms for a while.’

Emma’s eyes went wide. ‘This isn’t some joke Killian,’ she said. ‘We’re not safe here.’

He shrugged. ‘Then call it a dying man’s request,’ as he loped on behind the shrinking figure of Tink.


	4. Part Four - In the Dark of Night

Despite sparring over the methodology of their escape, Killian succumbed to Emma’s plan. Of course, it had taken a swift swipe to his side followed by a scandalous look from him as he collapsed into her arms to achieve it but he’s down. For the moment she has the upper hand. Their pixie like friend skipped over, peering down at him with concern as Emma fumbles with the medi scanner.

‘Damn it,’ she muttered, looking at the readout. There is nothing untoward there but Tink didn’t know that.

‘What wrong?’ Tink asks.

‘He was hurt in a crash,’ she replied. ‘I can’t take him much further.’

Tink stands up, cocking her head to the side as she looks up to the darkening sky. Emma follows her gaze. She doesn’t doubt they’ve been told the truth about how the others hunt. It’s Tink’s part in this she doesn’t understand. As they followed the girl through the maze of back alleys, Emma recognised the attempt to confuse them. However, Elsa’s last instructions help her a great deal to keep orientated – the suns are on the left when facing north.

‘Is there somewhere here we can take him?’ Emma asks as she looks at the high rises. She’s more familiar with this sort of surrounding being from the Core Planets.

‘Not safe here,’ Tink replies. ‘But have root, for pain. I go get it.’

Emma backed Killian in a wall which he slid down, following her routine perfectly as Tink flittered off down the narrow streets. Instead of pulling out her medi scanner, she pulled out her PDA to scan for anything following them.

‘You know, Swan,’ Killian grunted as he pulled out the rum flask. ‘If I didn’t know any better, I’d say there is more than a little pirate in you based on that move.’ He put the flask to his lips then pulled it away in disgust. ‘I’m out.’

Emma raised her eyebrows. ‘I’m surprised it lasted you this long,’ she said, drawing the pain relief from her belt and dosed him up before he could protest about using it on a real injury again. ‘Besides, you don’t end up a Captain in Star Fleet by playing entirely by the book.’

He raised his eyebrow, giving her a crooked smile. ‘So, are we being followed, Captain?’

‘Not so far as I can tell,’ she replied. ‘I want to head, so far as we can, in the direction of the beacon. You good to move?’

‘No thanks to you,’ he shot back without missing a beat as he tried to haul himself to his feet. Emma bent down and grabbed him by the elbow to haul him up. ‘Nightfall isn’t far off,’ he observed.

Emma shook her head. ‘According to this, we head down here and keep moving east. We’ll find it.’

Emma led them with the aid of her PDA to a twelve storey high-rise nestled between two skyscrapers. The dilapidated building looked uninviting particularly as it sat in the shadow of once shiny office and leisure blocks. Like the tower, they had spent the previous night in, the air was thick and musty as they walked down the corridor. The doors of the corridor were all closed leaving something of an eerie picture remnant of horror films. Light from Emma’s pen torch bounced off the peeling walls.

‘What do you think?’ she asked the light lingered on the stairs. It looked to be in a worse state than the tower.

‘We remain down here,’ Killian decided as he walked to the closet door. ‘with an exit route.’

Emma nodded, shining the torch in his direction. He kicked the door by the lock. He needed have bothered. The door shattered into the splinters landing at his feet.

‘Nice one, mate,’ she said, imitating his accent as she flashed the light into the room.

Whatever retort he had no his lips died when the light fell on skeletal remains bent over a table. ‘Bloody hell,’ he muttered as he walked in. ‘What do you think Swan? Same as the others.’

She already had her medi scanner out, while she flicked her torch around, the light landing on similar remains on a sofa by the window. Beside her, Killian powered up his gun, the whine of the plasma filled the room drowning out the sound of her scanner. She glanced over her shoulder at him but decided against calling him up on it. He was a pirate after all. Besides, she trusted him not to do anything stupid. She blinked in surprise at the thought. Less than forty-eight hours ago she had marched through the corridors of her Star Ship cursing having ever heard the name ‘Killian Jones’. 

The scanner blipped. ‘Same as the others,’ she agreed while she crossed referenced it with her earlier findings in the tower. ‘Medically more healthy than the tower occupants.’

‘Apart from the dead bit,’ deadpanned Killian. ‘What do you think happened?’

His voice was curious rather than attempting to force her to explain it. His cocky demeanor seeming to have fallen away in the last few hours.

‘I’ve heard of this sort of thing happening hundreds of years ago,’ she said, putting the device away. ‘Terraforming events or the ecosystem suddenly collapsing, but this seems to be something different. It’s like they sat down and just died.’

Killian raised his eyebrows at her as she walked to the slumped remains at the table. Most of it had collapsed to the floor over time. However, the skull sat in a bowl, hands and arms on the table with the pelvis and femurs on the chair. Then her eyes went to the sofa.

‘Think about it,’ she said. ‘If he died first, then wouldn’t she do something about it? Or vice versa?’

‘Are you hypothesising whatever happened to them was instantaneous?’

She shrugged, wanting nothing more to check the buildings but they were swathed in Neverland’s darkness. Emma had never been a fearful woman, but the hairs on the back of her neck pricked upon hearing a howl she had not heard the night before. Suddenly the gun she had been carrying on her shoulder seemed an attractive option; its status as an embargoed weapon could be damned. Killian had paused too then his blue eyes sought hers. He looked around, his gaze predatorial as he held out his hand to her. She went willingly, their fingers curling together as if the last four years had never happened.

He led her to a room of the main room they had found. Evidence suggested it had once been a bedroom with a broken down bed. It looked like a young woman’s room, with trinkets on the vanity table with posters peeling from the walls. There was a dark space against the wall of the window were a bedside table provided extra shelter.

‘Did I willingly follow you to your room,’ she asked as he slid down the wall to sit in the darkened space.

Killian chuckled. ‘I carried you,’ he said. ‘I wasn’t expecting the drug to take effect that quickly. I thought you’d be back on board the Storybrooke when it hit you.’

‘So the cuffs?’ she asked as she settled beside him, her knees brought to her chest.

‘Well, I had to infuriate you enough you’d follow me,’ he said nonchalantly. He tilted his head to her. Even in the gloomy darkness of night, she could make out the blue irises against the white of his eyes. ‘You have to know by now I’d never hurt you, Emma.’

She paused at the sound of her name on his lips. Even at the Academy, he had rarely called her anything but Swan, preferring to call her by the assumed surname she had taken upon joining Star Fleet. ‘Emma’ had been reserved for the quietest of moments. She sighed, arms winding around her legs as she rested her chin on her knees. She stared out into the darkness as silence created a vacuum. For the first time, in a very long time, Emma didn’t feel like a Star Fleet Captain anymore. If anything she feels like the heartbroken woman who had fought tooth and nail to get through her exams after Killian left.

‘But I did,’ he sighed as the darkness stretched on.

‘It was a long time ago.’

His hand touched her shoulder. A tentative trace of his fingertips. ‘You have no idea how many times I wanted to come back for you,’ he said softly. She looked over her shoulder, eyes narrowed despite the gloom. ‘But I knew how important Star Fleet was for you.’

She turned back so her eyes were on the wall opposite, shrugging her shoulder out of his touch.

‘You did good, Swan.’

‘I don’t need your praise,’ she said.

‘I guess not,’ he replied.

The night drew on in watchful silence. Pushing down her feelings was easy enough for Emma as she focused on her job. Between her feet, her PDA scanned their surroundings, reporting back on the lifeform movements it detected in their vicinity. She watched the blips with fascination, noting how they hunted in a coordinated pack. Where they not hunting for her she’d be interested in their prey. They were close.

Evolution suggested some of their senses would be heightened due to their nocturnal instincts, not to mention the physical changes they had observed in Tink. She held on to her Phaser. She had adjusted the setting to kill. It was rare she felt the need. It wasn’t just Star Fleet’s pursuit of justice that inspired her, but her deep set morality.

‘If they come here,’ she said, finally breaking over two hours of silence as the blips got closer, ‘I have one charge for a kill shot. You need to be ready to prime your plasma gun.’

Emma looked over her shoulder. He didn’t speak, but nodded in acceptance, his eyes falling closed for a moment as his head dipped. Her Phaser whined as it charged. She backed up against the wall, loath to this close to him after their earlier conversation. Emma slipped her PDA into her belt as the window rattled. Then the moonlight was blotted out with a screech. The shadow revealed a cross between a monkey with batlike wings. Emma started, her hand going to Killian’s, his fingers curling around hers. Her breath caught. His too, a slight rattle from the drain in his chest. Another screech went up then the moonlight returned. Emma held her breath, her fingers crushing Killian’s.

The first sun rose without further incident but her hand remained entwined with his. He sat with his eyes closed but he wasn’t sleeping. The threat of attack was too great but Emma was conscious if she didn’t get him onto the Storybrooke he wouldn’t last much longer in his current condition. A check of his medical status in the night, as she listened to his rattling breath indicated an infection was developing. Having less than sterile tools to use no doubt contributed to that. While her med kit contained a board spectrum antibiotic he needed proper treatment.

‘S’okay love,’ he said, breaking the silence as if he had heard her train of thought. ‘You don’t need to worry about me. Survived worse.’

‘Yet that doesn’t fill me with confidence,’ she said, pulling out her PDA.

They were approximately three blocks away from the signal Killian had picked up in the Jolly. Throughout the night, she had thought through the coding she would use to transmit to the Storybrooke. Like all Captain’s she had a specially designated distress code which would be the best thing to transmit. However, she also needed to communicate she had Killian with her.

‘I think we’re going to have company when we get to the signal,’ she continued, showing him the PDA readouts.

A rakish smile lifted his lips. ‘Good job we have these fully charged plasma guns,’ he said, patting his weapon.

‘If we don’t need to kill them, we shouldn’t,’ she replied, finally untangling their fingers and getting to her feet.

Once again, she shouldered the gun then dialled her phaser back to stun. Shooting down primitive lifeforms was not something she was keen to do. Killian, however, seemed to hold no such concerns. His gun whined as it booted to life. It contained over three hundred shots of radiated plasma that could drop a platoon of men in moments. Looking at him as he fiddled with the dials, her hand cold from where they had unlaced their fingers, filled her with sadness. It occurred to her once they got back on the Storybrooke he would be arraigned. Taken from her again. Even if they found evidence that proved his dismissal from Star Fleet was a sham his arrest warrant was longer than her arm; piracy, smuggling, larceny. Not to mention wanted in connection with a murder.

‘Ready,’ she asked when he looked up again.

‘Aye, love.’

Emma peered into all the windows she could as they passed the high rises. The same scene was repeated in several reception areas; remains on sofas where people may have been waiting. Killian mused, as he followed her gaze, that her hypothesis was correct.

‘It’s like,’ he said, glancing up at the sky, ‘the atmospherics were shut off and they were left to die. If that is the answer, the next question would be why would anyone want to do such a thing?’

Emma shook her head. ‘I have little doubt the records of why such a thing happened have been destroyed. With any luck, the Storybrooke may have surveyed the planet in greater depth while I’ve been here. There might be something to learn from that.’

‘Aye,’ he agreed. ‘How much further?’

Emma pulled out her PDA. ‘Another block or so.’

The closer they got the greater the urge was to throw her principals to the wind and charge up her plasma gun. The eerie silence combined with the knowledge they were walking into an ambush made her feel inferior. She knew logically there was nothing she could say or do to these people that would result in their survival. They had both heard the blood lust in the nightly howls as the streets were prowled around them. It didn’t make her decision any easier to stomach. The PDA showed the tribes formation in full now they are close enough. An attack circle around the signal. Their little friend in the middle which Emma wastes no time in pointing out to Killian.

‘Bait,’ he said roughly.

The harsh timbre of his voice helps her make her decision. She pulls the plasma gun around so it rests on her hip, ignoring the smirk on Killian’s face as she activates the weapon. She glances up, throwing him a challenging glare. He’s already likened her to a pirate.

‘You know, Swan,’ he said, ‘there is little shame in doing what you need to save your life.’

‘And you’d know about that, wouldn’t you Jones.’

‘He shot first,’ he shrugged. Then he looked conflicted. His dark eyes flickering over her. She saw the look each time they encountered each other since gaining her Captaincy. ‘Emma, should this not end well, I want to thank you for believing me.’

They were less than a foot apart. Emma felt the air knocked from her lungs as she looked up at him. ‘We’ll survive,’ she replied. ‘We have to.’

The conflict passed as he stepped into her personal space, hand going to her cheek before his lips crashed onto hers. Her fingers curled into his collar as she pushed up onto her toes to better the angle. Killian didn’t hold back as he sucked her lower lip between his lips. His other hand went to her waist as hers wrapped around his neck. The old dance felt bittersweet as they pressed together. Emma wasn’t certain what she was trying to pour into the moment but it wasn’t a goodbye. She didn’t want a goodbye from him. Not while she had the chance to save him.

The broke apart, breathless as their gazes locked. The shattered parts of his heart reflected back at her.

‘We should go,’ she whispered, her breath shaky. 

‘Aye.’

Ignoring the flickering emotions wasn’t easy. If he hadn’t been injured, she’d have suggested walking away and coming back to fight another day but Killian didn’t have that sort of time available. They had one chance. Emma took point as she rounded the building up ahead, her gun primed and ready. Tink looked as vulnerable as she had upon their first encounter, sat on the floor with her knees drawn to her chest. Behind her was a shuttle craft. It wasn’t new, by Emma’s estimation it was at least fifty years old. The transponder was clearly inside it.

Tink looked up as they approached. Emma waved down Killian’s gun, a decision made on how she was going to play this.

‘You gone lost,’ said Tink.

‘Shadows came,’ Emma explained. ‘We hid.’

Tink’s expression was sad. ‘I would have looked after you.’

Emma gave her doubtful expression, tilting her head to the side. ‘We know we’re surrounded,’ she said, pulling out her PDA. ‘We’ve been tracking you since last night. Clever trap and bait.’

‘Food, good flesh, doesn’t come often,’ Tink said.

‘No,’ said Emma softly. ‘Not many know about this place. Not to mention the Ji stationed between here and the outer lands.’

Tink blinked but she said nothing. Emma waited then something pricked the back of her neck. Killian called out her name, shooting the direction of the assault, as Emma removed a dart. She looked at it for a moment, the barbed tip glinting dangerously in the sun. The effect was almost instantaneous as the world swum before her, swaying to the sound of her name on Killian’s lips as he caught her with a grunt.

‘Told you having me collapse into your arms was a bad idea,’ she muttered as her body met the crumbled ground.

Her eyes didn’t drift shut as she thought they wouldn’t, instead, she gazed up at the sky, one sun beating down while the other began to rise. Killian stood over her, gun in one hand his PDA in the other. It isn’t going to be much of a fight, she thinks as she loses feeling in her extremities, watching him take aim and shoot. Around her is the pitter-patter of metal against the aging concrete floor. Her head flops to the side to see the brightly coloured darts.

‘Killian,’ she whispers just as a shadow passed over. Suddenly she is hauled up.

Her cheek flopped against the leather of Killian’s coat. They are moving again. Something stirred and she finds the strength to look up. The pixiesque Tink is rushing at them, mouth open wide to reveal a jaw full of fangs with her bat-like wings opened. Emma grabbed her Phaser and took aim, the bolt from it travelling at Tink before knocking her clean over. Her little body doubled over, tumbling head over feet as Killian made it to the shuttle. There was a little ceremony in the way he lay her down upon the cargo deck floor.

Others were coming as he manually pulled at the door. His grunts of pain unmistakeable, a yell of agony escaping his lips as the light was swallowed up. There was a thunk as Killian collapsed against the wall.

‘Swan, you still with me?’

She tried to nod but couldn’t move. ‘Aye,’ she whispered. ‘You need to activate my personal distress code. It is stored on my PDA.’ Her hand rested as best she could on the device tucked into her belt. She sighed as she started to lose the fight with whatever was coursing through her veins.

Killen loped over, heavily cradling his injured side reaching over her body for the device. His fingers brushed hers. Emma’s eyes flicked to his face noting how scraggy his jaw looked. His strength waning. If they did not get onto the Storybrooke soon then they would not survive the night. Then he was gone, heading to the console towards the front of the shuttle.

‘This is going to take some work,’ he said. ‘The tech is positively ancient.’ He looked over at his shoulder. ‘You stay with me, Swan.’

She gave a small flick of her hand to indicate she was still conscious. She anchored herself to his voice as everything around her faltered. Around them was the dull thud of the remainder of the tribe attacking the shuttle. It was designed to break through the atmosphere so it would stand up to wooden weapons and darts. It wouldn’t stand up to the plasma gun that had been left out there.

‘Gotcha,’ said Killian, victorious before he appeared at her side. ‘Swan?’

Her bleary eyes searched for him. She felt his fingers on her cheek. She opened her mouth but his lips brushed against her forehead. A tear welled up in her eye, pooling in the duct before it trickled away down her cheek.

‘Don’t you dare leave me like this, Emma,’ he whispered against her brow. ‘We’re getting through this together, remember?’

She didn’t have the capacity for any movement but she wanted to cover his hand with hers. She could only let regret pool in her gut as the energy in the air around her changed. A familiar tang, a whizzing sensation and then a warmth brushed her over her. Emma swallowed thickly.

Then a voice cut through her thought. ‘Someone get me medical, now,’ yelled the Engineering Officer of the Storybrooke. ‘The Captain is down.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter battered my soul from how difficult it was, so if you like it, send my soul a little love.


End file.
